Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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MULTIPLE THREE-PHASE INDUCTOR WITH A COMMON CORE
Background of the Invention
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to inductors, such as those used in electrical
filters, and more particularly to three-phase electrical inductors.
2. Description of the Related Art
AC motors often are operated by motor drives in which both the amplitude and
the frequency of the stator winding voltage are controlled to vary the rotor
speed. In a normal operating mode, the motor drive switches voltage from a
source to create an output voltage at a particular frequency and magnitude
that
is applied to drive the electric motor at a desired speed.
When the mechanism connected to the motor decelerates, the inertia of the that
mechanism causes the motor to continue to rotate even if the electrical supply
is
disconnected. At this time, the motor acts as a generator producing electrical
power while being driven by the inertia of its load. In a regenerative mode,
the
motor drive conducts that generated electricity from the motor to an
electrical
load, such as back to the supply used during normal operation. The
regeneration
can be used to brake the motor and its load. In other situations, the
regenerative
mode can be employed to recharge batteries or power other equipment
connected to the same supply lines that feed the motor drive during the normal
operating mode.
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Electrical filters are often placed between the electric utility supply lines
and the
motor drive to prevent electricity at frequencies other than the nominal
utility
line frequency (50 Hz or 60 Hz) from being applied from the motor drive onto
the supply lines. It is undesirable that such higher frequency signals be
conducted by the supply lines as that might adversely affect the operation of
other electrical equipment connected to those lines. In the case of a three-
phase
motor drive, a filter comprising one or more inductors and other components
for
each phase line has been used to couple the motor drive to the supply lines
and
attenuate the undesirable frequencies. Such inductors are wound on an iron
core
which adds substantial weight to the motor drive.
Thus, it is desirable to minimize the weight and size of the inductors used in
the
electrical supply line filters.
Summary of the Invention
An electrical inductor assembly comprises a core having first, second and
third
core bridges of magnetically permeable material and located spaced from and
substantially parallel to each other. First, second and third legs, also of
magnetically permeable material, extend between the first core bridge and the
second core bridge with each such leg being separated by a gap from one of the
first and second core bridges. Fourth, fifth and sixth legs, of magnetically
permeable material, are between the second core bridge and the third core
bridge and separated by a gap from one of the second and third core bridges.
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First, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth electrical coils are each wound
around a different one of the first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth
legs,
wherein electric currents flowing through those electrical coils produce
magnetic flux which flows through the second core bridge. In a preferred
embodiment, the magnetic flux produced by the first, second, and third
electrical coils flows through the second core bridge in an opposite direction
to
magnetic flux produced by the fourth, fifth and sixth electrical coils. This
produces a flux density in the second core bridge that is less than a sum of
flux
densities in each of the first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth legs.
This
produces a magnetic flux in the second core bridge that is less than a sum of
the
magnetic fluxes contained in each of the first, second, third, fourth, fifth
and
sixth legs.
In a specific implementation of the electrical inductor assembly, the first
electrical coil is connected to the fourth electrical coil wherein current
flowing
there through produces magnetic flux flowing through the second core bridge in
opposite directions. The second electrical coil is connected to the fifth
electrical
coil wherein current flowing there through produces magnetic flux flowing
through the second core bridge in opposite directions. The third electrical
coil is
connected to the sixth electrical coil wherein current flowing there through
produces magnetic flux flowing through the second core bridge in opposite
directions.
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Brief Description of the Drawings
FIGURE 1 is a schematic circuit diagram of a filter with an plurality of
inductors used to couple a regenerative motor drive to electrical supply
lines;
FIGURE 2 is a schematic representation of an inductor assembly for the filter,
in
which the sets of coils for two three-phase inductors are wound on a common
core;
FIGURE 3 illustrates a wound core for the inductor assembly;
FIGURES 4, 5 and 6 are views of different sides of the inductor assembly;
FIGURE 7 is an elevational view of a mounting bracket in the inductor
assembly;
FIGURE 8 is a side view of another version of the inductor assembly; and
FIGURE 9 is another assembly according to the present invention that has a
trio of three-phase inductors.
Detailed Description of the Invention
With initial reference to Figure 1, an electrical filter 10 for a regenerative
motor
drive has an inductor assembly 12 for the three phases of electricity applied
from a power supply lines to the motor drive. The filter 10 has three input
terminals 14a, 14b, and 14c for connection to the three-phase electrical
supply
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lines. Three output terminals 16a, 16b, and 16c are provided for connection to
the regenerative motor drive.
A first three-phase inductor 18 and a second three-phase inductor 20 are
connected in series between the input terminals 14 a-c and the output
terminals
5 16 a-c. The first three-phase inductor 18 has a first coil 21, a second coil
22,
and a third coil 23; and the second three-phase inductor 20 has a fourth coil
24,
a fifth coil 25, and a sixth coil 26. The first and fourth coils 21 and 24 are
connected in series between one set of input and output terminals 14a and 16a.
Similarly, the second and fifth coils 22 and 25 are connected in series
between
input and output terminals 14b and 16b, while the third and sixth coils 23 and
26 are connected between the third pair of input and output terminals 14c and
16c. The filter 10 also includes three capacitors 27, each connected between a
common node 28 and a node between a different series connected pair of the
inductor coils 21-26.
With reference to Figure 2, the six inductor coils 21-26 are wound on a
common core 30 formed of steel or other material which has a relatively high
permeability as conventionally used for inductor cores. The core 30 comprises
three core bridges 31, 32, and 33 and six legs 34, 35, 36, 37, 38 and 39, that
are
formed as laminations of a plurality of plates places side-by-side as is
conventional practice. As used herein, "high permeability" means a magnetic
permeability that is at least 1000 times greater than the permeability of air,
and
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"low permeability" means a magnetic permeability that is less than 100 times
the permeability of air.
The core bridges 31, 32, and 33 are spaced apart substantially parallel to
each
other and extend across the full width of the core 30 in the orientation shown
in
the drawings. The first inductor 18 utilizes the first and second core bridges
31
and 32 between which extend the first, second, and third legs 34, 35, and 36.
In
the illustrated embodiment, these three legs 34-36 are contiguous with and
extend outwardly from the second core bridge 32 and combine to form a first
core element resembling a capital English letter "E". The remote ends of
first,
second, and third legs 34-35 face the first core bridge 31 and are spaced
therefrom by a low permeability gaps 41, 42, and 43, respectively. A spacer 47
of low permeability material is placed in each gap and may be made of a
synthetic aramid polymer, such as available under the brand name NOMEX~
from E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.
Alternatively an air gap may be provided between each leg 34-35 and the first
core bridge 31. As a further alternative, the gaps 41, 42 and 43 can be
located
between the first, second, and third legs 34, 35 and 36 and the second core
bridge 32, in which case the legs would be contiguous with the first core
bridge
31.
The fourth, fifth, and sixth legs 37, 38, and 39 project from the third core
bridge 33 toward the second core bridge 32 thereby forming a second core
element resembling a capital English letter "E". The remote ends of the
fourth,
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fifth, and sixth legs 37-39 are spaced from the second a bridge 32 by a gap
44,
45, and 46 which creates an area of relatively low magnetic permeability along
each leg. A low permeability spacer 49 is placed in the gaps 44, 45, and 46,
however an air gap alternatively may be provided between each leg 37-39 and
the second core bridge 32. In an alternative version of the core 30, the gaps
44,
45, and 46 could be located between the fourth, fifth, and sixth legs 37-39
and
the third core bridge 33, in which case the legs would be contiguous with the
second core bridge 32. Additional gaps may be provided along each leg 34-39.
Each of the coils 21-23 of the first inductor 18 is wound in the same
direction
around a different one of the first, second, and third core legs 34-36. The
winding of the first inductor coils 21-23 about the core legs 34-36 is such
that
when current flows through each coil 21-23 in a direction from its input
terminal 14a, b or c to the associated output terminal 16 a, b or c, the
magnetic
flux produced by each coil flows in the same direction through the first core
bridge 31 and in the same direction in the second core bridge 32 as
represented
by the dashed lines with arrows. Note that each magnetic flux path for the
first
inductor 18 traverses two of the gaps 41, 42 and 43 in the core 30. The
magnetic flux produced by the first inductor 18, for all practical design
purposes, does not flow through the third core bridge 33 as that path requires
traversing four of the gaps 41-46 in the core 30, thereby encountering a
significantly greater reluctance than the illustrated paths. In other words
there
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is negligible magnetic coupling between the core sections for the first and
second inductors 18 and 20.
Each of the fourth, fifth, and sixth coils 24, 25, and 26 of the second
inductor
20 is wound in the same direction around a different one of the fourth, fifth,
and sixth legs 37, 38, and 39. Therefore, when electric current flows from the
input terminals 14a-c to the output terminals 16a-c magnetic flux produced
from each coil will flow the same direction through the second core bridge 32
and in the same direction through the third core bridge 33 as denoted by the
dashed lines with arrows. Each magnetic flux path for the second inductor 20
traverses two of the core gaps 44, 45 and 46. The magnetic flux produced by
the second inductor 20, for all practical design purposes, does not flow
through
the first core bridge 31 as that path traverses four gaps in the core 30,
thereby
having a significantly greater reluctance than the illustrated paths. In other
words there is negligible magnetic coupling between the core sections for the
first and second inductors 18 and 20.
Current flowing through the pair of inductor coils (21, 24), (22, 25) or (23,
26)
for a given electrical phase produces magnetic flux that flows in opposite
directions through the common second core bridge 32 that is shared by the two
inductors 18 and 20. For example, the first and fourth coils 21 and 24 are
wound around the respective core legs 34 and 37 so that each coil produces
magnetic flux flowing in a clockwise direction when current flows in a given
direction between the associated input and output terminals 14a and 16a of the
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filter 10. The magnetic flux from each coil 21 and 24 flows in opposite
directions through the second core bridge 32. The same is true for the
magnetic
flux from the other pairs of coils (22, 25) and (23, 26). As a result, the
magnetic
flux contained in the second core bridge 32, that is shared by both inductors
18
and 20, is less than the sum of the magnetic fluxes contained within the six
core
legs 34-39. This allows the size of the second core bridge 32 to be smaller
than
the equivalent core bridge required for only one of the inductors 18 or 20. In
other words by combining the two inductors 18 and 20 onto a common core,
portions of that core can be reduced in size so that the weight of the
inductor
assembly is less than the total weight of two separate cores conventionally
used
for inductors 18 and 20. Likewise the size of the present combined core
assembly is less than the overall size of two separate cores. This results in
a
filter 10 that is lighter weight and smaller in size than conventional filter
practice would dictate.
Figure 3 shows an alternative structure of the core 30 that is constructed of
five
segments 50-54. Four inner segments 50, 51, 52 and 53 have identical shapes,
each formed by winding a strip of steel or other magnetically permeable
material
in a tight spiral with a center opening. The four inner segments 50-53 that
are
placed adjacent one another in a two dimensional square array. The fifth
segment
54 is formed by winding another strip of the same magnetically permeable
material in a spiral around the array of the inner segments 50-53. Epoxy or
adhesive tape is used to hold the wound segments together. The assembled core
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is cut along lines 55 and 56 to form three sections 57, 58 and 59 of the core
30.
In comparison to Figure 2 the uppermost section 57 corresponds to the first
core
bridge 31. The intermediate section 58 corresponds to the second core bridge
32
and the first, second and third legs 34, 35 and 36, while the bottom section
59
5 forms the third core bridge 33 and the fourth, fifth and sixth legs 37, 38
and 39.
Note that because the cut lines 55 and 56 are spaced along the sides of the
inner
segments, portions of the first core bridge 31 has three tabs projecting
toward the
first, second and third legs 34-36, and the second core bridge 32 has a
similar
trio of tabs projecting toward the fourth, fifth and sixth legs 37-39. Looked
at
10 another way, the gaps in the core do not have to be located precisely at
the
junction of each leg and the cross member of the adjacent core bridge.
Figures 4-6 illustrate different side views of the inductor assembly 12 with
the
core configuration shown in Figure 2. The core components are formed by a
lamination of metal plates 65 sandwiched between and supported by a pair of
low magnetically permeable brackets 60, one of which is shown in detail in
Figure 7. The brackets 60 are L-shaped with three upstanding bars 61, 62, and
63 that project parallel to the core legs 34-39 and are secured to the three
core
bridges by bolts. Each inductor coil 21-26 is wound around a separate plastic
bobbin 64 that has a center aperture through which the associated core leg and
the bracket bar extend. Each of the brackets has a short base portion 66 for
securing the inductor assembly 12 to an enclosure or other support.
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With reference again to Figure 2, the inductor coils 21-26 may have taps
between their ends. For example, the fourth, fifth and sixth inductor coils 24-
26
have intermediate taps 68. Each of these coils 24-26 is wound on a separate
bobbin with a tap 68 connected at some point between the ends of that winding
thereby creating two coil segments. Thus, each tapped coil with two segments
is
equivalent to two individual inductor coils wound on the same leg of the core
30. One of those individual inductor coils is formed between one end of the
winding and the tap 68, with the other inductor coil formed between the tap
and
the other end of the winding.
Figure 8 illustrates an alternative inductor assembly 70 of tapped coils. Here
the
first second and third inductor coils 71, 72 and 73 are the same as the first
second and third coils 21, 22 and 23 in Figure 5. However the fourth, fifth
and
sixth inductor coils 74, 75 and 76 are each wound on a separate double bobbin
78 that has upper and lower sections 80 and 81 which are separated by an
intermediate wall 82. Each of the fourth, fifth and sixth inductor coils 74-76
is
formed by two segments connected in series with a tap there between. For
example, the fourth inductor coil 74 has a first segment 84 wound on the upper
bobbin section 80 and a second segment 86 that is wound on the lower bobbin
section 81 with the intermediate wall 82 separating those coil segments.
With reference to Figure 9, additional inductors can be provided on the same
assembly. For example, inductor assembly 90 has a trio of three-phase
inductors 91, 92, and 93, each comprising three coils wound on legs of E-
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shaped core elements 94, 95 and 96. The remote ends of the legs of the first
core element 94 are spaced from the adjacent second core element 95 and the
remote ends of the legs of the second core element 95 are spaced from the
third
core element 96. The remote ends of the legs of the third core element 96 are
spaced from a separate core bridge 98. A greater number of inductors can be
stacked in a similar manner.
The foregoing description was primarily directed to a preferred embodiment of
the invention. Although some attention was given to various alternatives
within
the scope of the invention, it is anticipated that one skilled in the art will
likely
realize additional alternatives that are now apparent from disclosure of
embodiments of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of the invention should
be determined from the following claims and not limited by the above
disclosure.
